Front and Center: Marci Craft
Published on Monday, June 19, 2023
By: Ruth Cummins
Creating a fulfilling and engaging work environment for nurses at the University of Mississippi Medical Center is a passion with Marci Craft and coworkers at the Office of Nursing Quality, Development and Professional Practice.
“We try to keep our nursing staff engaged in the hospital through activities during Nurses Week and other things to help build morale,” said Craft, a project manager in Nursing Quality.
“I work with a great group of ladies who are very creative and very artistic, and they have lots of good ideas for us to bring our nurses together.”
A staple in Nursing Quality for three years, Craft assumed her current position almost two years ago. She coordinates many of the office’s initiatives, including nominations and selection of Daisy Award winners among the nursing ranks, putting together The SCOPE newsletter, and handling day-to-day accounting functions.
“She helps everyone in our office stay on task,” said Patrice Donald, registered nurse manager for clinical recruitment and retention. “Can you imagine five different people asking you to assist with projects?
“She is our gatekeeper. It's a huge undertaking, especially in an office which boasts as many as 35 projects throughout the year in addition to the work she completes daily.”
Craft was a real estate agent for 17 years before switching to a career in health care. “This was all new to me - just seeing what it takes to make the hospital run,” she said.
Craft’s role requires someone who is organized, understands prioritization and has keen time management skills, Donald said. “In managing the day-to-day functions of nursing-led projects, we must have someone who is also efficient and effective,” she said. “Marci exemplifies a strong suit in both areas.”
UMMC's nursing force is more than 2,000 strong and encompasses main campus hospitals, clinics in the metro and statewide, UMMC Grenada and UMMC Holmes County.
Donald and the Nursing Quality team, Craft said, “help make my job a lot easier with their creative and fun ideas.” The married mom of kids ages 15 and 18, Craft and her family love to spend time outdoors. “We like to ride at ATV parks, boat with friends on the Reservoir, have game nights and travel,” she said.
“Music is my therapy. If I’m having a bad day, a good day, cleaning the house, whatever I’m doing, I almost always have on music.”
“We appreciate Marci’s attention to detail,” Donald said. “more and more importantly, we realize that it's people like her that keep our organization flowing and lead us to greater success.”
Read more Front and Center stories online. Do you know a student, staff, volunteer or faculty member at the University of Mississippi Medical Center whose story would make an interesting feature or deserves to be recognized? Think about someone with outstanding job commitment, fascinating hobby or amazing accomplishment.
To nominate someone to be considered for a Front and Center feature, just complete and submit this short form. If that person is picked for a feature, a member of the Communications and Marketing staff will contact him or her to learn more about his or her personal story.